Games weren't the only products revealed to the press at Microsoft's Gamestock yesterday. The software giant unveiled three pieces of hardware designed for voice communication, force-feedback gameplay, and real-time strategy games.

　　Called the SideWinder Game Voice, Microsoft's new voice-communications peripheral is actually made of two pieces. The first is a standard headset and microphone combination that attaches to the second component, a handheld gamepad with eight illuminated buttons. It's this second component that's the heart of the Game Voice, as it gives gamers the ability to program the buttons for a number of different options, depending on the game being played. Microsoft showed off this functionality by demonstrating the Game Voice alongside Epic's Unreal Tournament. Players were using the Game Voice to talk to each other, and toggled talking to their team and talking to everyone using the buttons on the Game Voice's gamepad. The headset and controller come bundled with voice-recognition software as well, and Microsoft displayed its capabilities to quickly build and dispatch units in Age of Empires 2 with a simple spoken word.

　　Also on display was Microsoft's new generation of force-feedback controller. Called the SideWinder Force Feedback 2, this USB joystick looks more like the older SideWinder Precision Pro than the Force Feedback Pro in that its base is much smaller and hardly looks as if it could house a force-feedback motor. More surprising is the fact that the Force Feedback 2 even houses the power supply within its base. Doing so gives the joystick faster force-feedback responses, and because of its new 16-bit 25MHz processor, the Force Feedback 2 now can deliver more than 100 unique responses. Improvements in the joysticks' layout include a larger POV hat, a push throttle (like the old SideWinder 3D Pro), and buttons with better tactile response.

　　The last gaming device shown off by Microsoft was arguably the most unique. Probably the first of its kind, the SideWinder Strategic Commander is a controller designed especially for RTS games, and it looks like a mouse that's bristling with buttons. In reality, the Strategic Commander is actually a stationary left-handed device designed to augment the classic mouse and keyboard controls of real-time strategy games. The controller is made up of a contoured control unit with six illuminated programmable buttons, three shift buttons, and a zoom button. This control unit sits on top of a stationary base, and it can be pushed and pulled in 16 directions for map navigation. While it might seem awkward at first, the demonstration showed off a player absolutely blowing through multiple tasks in Age of Empires 2 with ease. Most gamers might be hesitant to use the Strategic Commander at first, but a few rounds of getting beaten by other players who are using the device might change their minds.

　　All three of these peripherals are scheduled to release this October. Microsoft estimates that the Strategic Commander will retail for US$59.95, the Game Voice for $69.95, and the Force Feedback 2 for $99. The company made no announcement regarding a nonforce-feedback version of the Force Feedback 2 joystick, however. Look for full reviews of all these products as October approaches.